Emily Anderson Stern

Utah turned to by-mail ballots to raise voter participation. Amid proposals to nix that option, nearly all Utahns are choosing to use it. Our video pro Trevor Christiansen helped make a TLDR of my story: sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Ahead of MOUs with nuclear startups, Utah quietly requested PR firms apply to get residents on board. The $1.8mil plan has ads, “educational events” and private meetings of nuclear companies, potential investors + public officials to find“mutual interests”sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Dana White, who heads UFC, donated hundreds of thousands to Trump 47 Committee last year. Portions of that were passed on to state Republican parties, including $10K to the Utah GOP.

As ICE enforces Trump’s increasingly aggressive immigration policies, 4 Utah companies are making money off of contracts with the agency. One has ties to a U.S. senator, and another has lobbied Congress to put more funds toward detaining migrants. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Deluged with criticism, Mike Lee has deleted some of his posts spreading misinformation about the shooting of two Democratic Minnesota lawmakers. Lee has not apologized for his remarks, and other misleading posts blaming the violence on “the left” remain. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

After he made unfounded claims tying the shootings of Democratic Minnesota state lawmakers to their Democratic governor and “the left,” Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar has a message for Utah Sen. Mike Lee: “This is not a joke.” With @RobertGehrke. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

The Utah lawmaker who pushed the bill banning pride flags, setting up another standoff between SLC and the supermajority GOP Legislature, has set his sights on erasing another symbol of LGBTQ+ belonging in the capital city: Harvey Milk Boulevard. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

A transgender teen in Utah had the go-ahead from the state’s eligibility commission to participate in girls’ high school sports. Even so, UHSAA would not allow her to compete and cited President Donald Trump's February executive order. kuer.org/politics-gover…

In a Utah first, a lawyer has been sanctioned for filing a motion that featured a "fake precedent" invented by ChatGPT. He said a law clerk was responsible and he did not review the document before filing it with the court. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Since last year, Utah has extended health coverage to as many as 2,000 immigrant kids at a time. But the Trump administration sent a letter this week warning the 14 states that have such programs to discontinue them, or be audited. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Utah Democrats have a nearly three-decade losing streak in statewide races. I talked with front-runners for party boss — a recent gubernatorial hopeful and a young politico who oversaw Democratic wins last year — about how they would try to change that. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

The evidence review required under Utah’s gender-affirming care ban for trans youth is out, 2 1/2 years after it took effect. Some lawmakers, including one of the bill’s sponsors, are already dismissing its conclusion: such care has positive outcomes. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Sen. John Curtis hints at a possible increase in the LDS Church’s role in foreign assistance during Senate hearing. #doge #usaid #lds #utpol ✍️ Emily Anderson Stern & Yours Truly sltrib.com/religion/2025/…

BREAKING: The Utah GOP's official website was targeted by what a senior party official said was a cyberattack that led to multiple links to pornographic material being uploaded to the party’s page. #utpol sltrib.com/news/politics/…

See the people sitting in those chairs along the back wall? There's about 7 of them there and they are local media. Long after every delegate has left they are working to bring you information. Thank them sometime if you can because you rely on their work whether you like it or…

At its annual organizing convention today, the Utah Republican Party voted down a resolution that would have condemned any effort by President Donald Trump to seek a third term in office. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

I’m delighted (and so grateful) to be included among the 2025 class of @IRE_NICAR fellows, and can’t wait to bring new ideas and tools for investigative reporting back to Utah. Other journalists who are going to New Orleans: hmu, I wanna hangout. ire.org/ire25-conferen…

Update: Over 24 hours after I contacted DHHS, and the dept saying it wasn’t sure why reports were removed, deletions were attributed to “privacy concerns.” The disappearance coincided with similar actions by the Trump admin, but DHHS says there’s “no … political motivation.”

Utah is getting its own DOGE — sort of. Gov. Spencer Cox said he’s “excited” about efforts to cut government, “but unfortunately, [DOGE is] not looking at outcomes.” State agencies won’t see mass layoffs, per the governor, but “There may be some changes.”sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Utah’s trans teens are 3 ½ times more likely to consider suicide than their peers, per a statewide student survey. But conservative Utah, which passed anti-trans legislation for the fourth year in a row, quietly purged those figures from a state website. sltrib.com/news/politics/…

Starting today, mail-in ballots have an earlier deadline. Instead of having to be postmarked by the day before Election Day, county clerks must receive them before polls close. ICYMI: Many of the law’s changes came from the group that wrote Project 2025. sltrib.com/news/politics/…